Science – Page 3 – MatterUnderMind

I might believe in UFOs, but I don’t believe YOU…

I might believe in UFOs, but I don’t believe YOU…

By Brett Vollert| 2015-11-11T07:28:40-08:00 December 7th, 2012|Astronomy, Biology, Featured, Science, Technology|

I love a good UFO conspiracy as much as the next guy. However, traveling across the universe and through the vacuum of space to probe some humans seems ridiculous. And while the numbers are clearly on the side of the existence of extra-terrestrial intelligent life, it is hard for me to believe that these same advanced aliens fail to be able to land securely and crash into the the deserts of New Mexico. Although if these are aliens are crashing into our planet, I have new found confidence that we could successfully defend ourselves against a alien invasion. Because [...]

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Our Cosmic Bubble

Our Cosmic Bubble

By Brett Vollert| 2015-11-11T07:28:51-08:00 December 4th, 2012|Astronomy, Biology, Featured, Philosophy, Science|

Our cosmic bubble is a nurturing oasis, yet so fragile and vulnerable. The Earth is home to us all, the only known refuge for life across the universe. Past its thin atmosphere, we find life growing abundantly. From the oxygen rich atmosphere, to the shielding magnetic field; the Earth seems to be almost perfectly adjusted for life. As if the planet was made with humanity in mind. As if this place we call home was predestined for life. So much had to have gone right for the earth to be so hospitable. However, this third rock from the sun has not always been [...]

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Programmable Consciousness

Programmable Consciousness

By Brett Vollert| 2015-11-11T07:29:03-08:00 November 14th, 2012|Biology, Philosophy|

The most common assessment of human consciousness among scientists is that it has spawned from the unique complexity of the human mind. That within our DNA lays a design for a being capable of dreams, hopes, and fears. Yes, these seemingly intangible qualities are thought to be simply manifestations of a complex physical structure. It is ironic that the concept of consciousness being the product of complex bio-chemistry is hard for that same consciousness to accept. That mechanical processes, quantum effects, chemical interactions and biological machines can generate such a seemingly unique, self-aware, and sentient being. But if it is only a matter of complexity then it could be [...]

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DNA’s Cat in the Bag

DNA’s Cat in the Bag

By Brett Vollert| 2015-11-11T07:30:02-08:00 November 9th, 2012|Biology, Physics, Politics, Technology|

Maurice Wilkins was a chatty Cathy. Steeped in a war of secrecy he handed the opposition his most precious intel and watched them claim victory. Some may think him the fool who let the cat out of the bag, but he just may be the hero science needed. At a time when life was thought to have some immaterial quality, three opposing factions were racing to be the first to give the essence of life a physical explanation. It was a race to see the structure of DNA, the “life molecule”. Maurice Wilkins was working with Roslyn Franklin at Kings [...]

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Your Science is Flawed!

Your Science is Flawed!

By Brett Vollert| 2015-11-11T07:30:13-08:00 November 5th, 2012|Featured, Politics, Science|

In philosophy, it's name is in-determinism but in science it is referred to as the burden of proof. Yes, fact is the foundation that science rests upon. In fact, the search for quantifiable and observable proof may just be the defining quality of science. Science searches for truth and its compass is proof. But much like the real thing, could this compass also not always point north? Could this absolute dedication to observable validation lead us astray? As children we are confronted with the harsh reality that absolute certainty is realistically unattainable. When children observe their favorite play toy covered by a [...]

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Creationist Evolution

Creationist Evolution

By Brett Vollert| 2015-11-11T07:30:25-08:00 October 20th, 2012|Biology, Philosophy, Science|

There is a great divide between science and religion. And these two groups have never had a more polarizing topic than the origin of man. Evolutionists vs. Creationists has become a misconstrued bifurcation. But this battle royal is an unnecessary one and this divide can be easily bridged. There can be a peaceful union of church and science. Evolution through natural selection is a theory for a mechanism of positive change in organisms. Simply put it states that the organisms that survive are the ones that have properties that encourage their survival. This idea is a theory, much like the [...]

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The Superior Species Complex

The Superior Species Complex

By Brett Vollert| 2016-09-20T07:23:55-07:00 October 19th, 2012|Biology, Philosophy|

Hello my name is humanity and I have a species superiority complex. I am the pinnacle of evolution...or creation. I haven't unanimously decided yet. Unfortunately, my neighboring species on this planet don't all feel the same. They find me a nuisance and a danger to our planet, but honestly I couldn't care less because they are too inferior to even have an opinion. In fact, I don't think they can even think at all. We humans have a giant ego. However, have we possibly misevaluated our superiority? It just might be the case that we have delusions of grandeur. Does the towering [...]

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Stargazing Monkeys

Stargazing Monkeys

By Brett Vollert| 2015-11-11T07:30:45-08:00 October 10th, 2012|Astronomy, Biology, Philosophy|

We are as specks on a cosmic fabric, a vapor in the celestial wind. However, our species have become conscious not only of our existence but also of the happenings of the universe we inhabit. How is this revelation of existence evolutionarily significant? Or is this question a leading one due to the assumptions imbedded? There is strong fossil, genetic, and experimental data to support the selfishness of genes. Meaning that genes that survive are the ones that promote the reproduction of the organism. Or in some rare cases simply the reproduction of the gene itself. This is [...]

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The Nature of Nature

The Nature of Nature

By Brett Vollert| 2015-11-11T07:31:02-08:00 September 27th, 2012|Featured, Physics, Science|

Science aims to reveal what the world really is. Not what we think it should be or what we wish it to be but what it truly is. Science seeks the true nature of nature. But scientists have become increasingly aware that the world we see is only a shade of reality. That the true nature of nature is an elusive entity. An excerpt from my screenplay: "No, the universe doesn't scare me. In fact, it is the universe’s expanse that entices me. I find solace in its enormity. Looking out at the night sky, I see that I am just part of a bigger whole. And [...]

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Goodbye Blue Sky

Goodbye Blue Sky

By Brett Vollert| 2015-11-11T07:31:13-08:00 September 19th, 2012|Astronomy, Physics, Politics, Science, Technology|

All men have looked up at the sky in wonder, but less have looked down from the sky in awe. Few have been wrapped in the dark arms of the universe. And even fewer have seen all of mans existence shrink into a pale blue dot as Carl Sagan so eloquently put it. These men, through the help of our government were the pioneers of a new frontier. And their efforts have paved the way for hundreds of new space fearing innovations like satellites, orbiting telescopes, and private space flight. But even though this innovation has redefined the skyline, it still has found a glass [...]

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What is Real?

What is Real?

By Brett Vollert| 2016-04-25T21:47:13-07:00 September 8th, 2012|Featured, Philosophy, Physics, Science|

What can we not doubt? What can we be certain of? It seems all that we can be entirely certain of is that we are in fact experiencing something, even while not knowing quite what it is. In the words of Decartes, “cogito ergo sum” or “I think therefore I am,” our experience is our reality, and our thoughts are our souls. So how does this consciousness, capable of experiences, stem from matter. “Well whatever matter is made of it clearly isn’t matter” (source unknown). At least not as defined by common understanding. We see matter as inanimate, lifeless and [...]

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The Big Freeze

The Big Freeze

By Brett Vollert| 2015-11-11T07:31:58-08:00 September 7th, 2012|Astronomy, Philosophy, Physics, Science, Technology|

Like most landmark discoveries, the history of our universe was stumbled upon by accident. It seems most game-changing, earth-shattering discoveries are a product of proper planning giving opportunity to dumb luck. (The discoveries of radiation, the electromagnetic force and penicillin to name a few.) Albert Einstein once said, “Education is what is left after we have forgotten all we have learned in school.” And it seems similarly, scientific break-throughs are what is left after the scientific method breaks down. The discovery that revealed our universe's rich history was the detection of cosmic background radiation, and it was found in a [...]

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Particle Physic’s Independence Day: July 4th 2012

Particle Physic’s Independence Day: July 4th 2012

By Brett Vollert| 2015-11-11T07:32:12-08:00 July 4th, 2012|Physics, Politics, Technology|

The opening of the Large Hadron Collider at CERN in Geneva, Switzerland in 2008 was paired with grandiose predictions of a glimpse of the early universe and the elusive Higgs particle. “The particle that gives all other particles Mass.” Or so they thought as they dubbed it “the God Particle,” giving rise to the first transatlantic particle physics holy war between CERN in Geneva and Fermilab in Chicago, IL. Fermilab was home to the Tevatron particle accelerator that had been in operation since 1983, and with the creation of the LHC at CERN they were immediately dwarfed as technologically [...]

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